The panel, moderated by Tyler McCann, Managing Director of the Canadian Agri-Food Policy Institute, speculated on the kinds of tariffs and other actions the U.S. would take on Canada as well as how Canada could respond including developing more agrifood trade with Mexico and the rest of the world.

Fen Hampson, a Professor of International Affairs at Carleton University, said the pain of the tariffs will depend “on how long and what else Trump does to us.” At the same time, there is the risk of his actions, including tariffs on Mexico, causing considerable pain in the U.S. and that could even trigger a massive flight of capital from the country.

Trump’s actions could also violate international agreements and could be blocked by the courts and might even hurt the Republicans in the mid-term elections in 2006.

To offset the tariffs, Canada needs to get serious “about rebuilding our rail, road and port infrastructure and providing countries such as Germany with LNG. We need to get smart about it. We need to put U.S. agriculture subsidies on the table. Let our farms give U.S. producers a run for the money.”

Canadians should not buy another car or truck built in the U.S. if tariffs are imposed. “It’s in the U.S.’s interest to buy from us,” Hampson said. Also Canada should discuss how it is prepared to respond to them.

John Stackhouse, Senior Vice-President of the Royal Bank of Canada, said the response of the provinces and territories to the tariff threats was remarkable to see. Meanwhile Canada needs to focus on fixing its own problems. “We’ve been too complacent in how we managed our relationship with the U.S. But I think we’ll come out of this stronger.”

Add in the likelihood of a Canadian federal election and that the centralization of U.S. government policy under Trump will require several months “which will bring a system focus on Canada that we have not seen before.

“We have to look after our GDP because we are more dependent on the U.S. than most Canadians realize. We need to think more about other parts of the world where there are huge opportunities for our products.

The government needs to work with Canadian companies to address export challenges. “This an opportunity for the Canadian corporate community to stand up. Agrifood has real opportunities because of our major companies. They are engaged with the U.S. Canada should also emphasize food security because it is helping to feed America. Canada needs a partnership discussion with the U.S. rather than being on the defensive.”

Paul Samson, President of the Centre for International Governance Innovation, said the tariffs could also become an issue to be judged by the World Trade Organization.

“We need to have a better plan. Now we don’t have the political leadership,” he said. The government should make sure the tariffs lead to everything in the relations with the U.S. being looked at.

“Agrifood needs to be put on a better position,” he said. “We need a new partnership with the U.S. and we should leverage what we have for a deal. Everything has to be on the table. We need a North American agreement. A bit of economic nationalism would help.”

This news item prepared for National Newswatch